This is another one of those items that is commonly found in North American stores, but is very hard to come by anywhere else in the world, Sydney included. Luckily, this pumpkin pie spice mix is easy to make and calls for “international” spices, so it can be made at home no matter where you…
JALEBI – जलेबी
Tomorrow marks the beginning of Diwali (दिवाली), the “festival of lights”, a 5-day Indian festival that celebrates the triumph of good over evil and light over darkness. Light is the symbol of the celebrations, so much so that many candles and oil lanterns are lit during the 5 days of the festival. Another very important…
CHESTNUT RUM MOUSSE
Yesterday I showed you how easy it is to make your own Chestnut and Vanilla Cream… now that you have such a yummy treat in your fridge, how about making something else with it, if you haven’t finished it off the spoon yet, that is! Desserts in a glass are my kind of treat and…
CHESTNUT AND VANILLA CREAM – CRÈME DE MARRONS VANILLÉE
Chestnuts remind me of winter in Italy. When it’s cold (and it does get quite cold in Milan), you can buy hot roasted chestnuts from street carts to warm you up. The smell of roasted chestnuts always makes me think of Christmas and cozy winter evenings. I soooo love them! When they are in season,…
BLOOD ORANGE SORBET
It is time again for the “Secret recipe club” reveal! I am sure you all know what the club is about, but for the few of you who still don’t know about it, here goes a brief explanation. Each month you are assigned a participating food blogger to make a recipe from and in turn someone else…
PUMPKIN AND COCONUT MUFFINS
Today’s recipe is another one of those recipes that I put together to finish up a few ingredients I had left over from making other dishes. I had a some pumpkin purée and some coconut cream that needed to be used quickly, so I thought of combining them and making something healthy that the girls…
MAPLE PEAR MOUSSE SHOOTERS WITH CHOCOLATE AND HAZELNUTS
I love serving desserts in shooter glasses. I find them so cute and the best part is that you can eat them even at the end of a full meal without feeling too bad (or too full). Today’s recipe is very easy to make and it uses up some of the pears that are lying…
WALNUT BANANA BREAD
If you like banana bread, this is a fantastic recipe. I must admit I am not a great Jamie Oliver follower when it comes to his take on Italian food, but I do trust him for the rest. I had already tried and fallen for his brownies a little while ago and this recipe was just…
VANILLA PANNA COTTA WITH PASSION FRUIT COULIS
Today’s recipe is a delicious twist on a classic Italian dessert. The base is a simple and evergreen vanilla panna cotta (a great addition to any home chef skill set), but I think the passion fruit coulis on the top is the best part and it gives it a very exotic touch. I also love…
CRÈME BRÛLÉE
Today I want to share with you the recipe of a popular French dessert: crème brûlée. It is one of those dishes that should be in every food lover cookbook as it is a classic, simple yet sophisticated dish that pleases everyone. I personally love it and it is one of my husband’s weaknesses. I…
WATER BASED CHOCOLATE MOUSSE WITH GRAND MARNIER
I have come across a few chocolate mousse recipes lately and I have seldom made any as I have a recipe that I always make and that I think is perfect… anyhow, when I read about a chocolate mousse that does not contain any eggs and any cream, I had to do some research on…
RICOTTA AND LEMON MUFFINS
There are some flavours that I think are a perfect match and ricotta and lemon are definitely on the top of the list. It is a very common combination in Italian pâtisserie and when you try it out, you will understand why. Ricotta is a very mild cheese that is often used in Italian sweets…
GRANITA AL CAFFÈ CON PANNA
I am very excited about sharing today’s Regional Italian recipe. You can easily guess that this week’s region is Sicily… granite (plural for granita) are the quintessential Sicilian breakfast, especially in summer. There are so many flavours, it is hard to choose only one when you sit at one of the local cafés… my favourite…
CHOCOLATE PECAN WAFERS
And it is time again for the “Secret recipe club” reveal! I am sure you all know what the club is about, but for the few of you who still don’t know about it, here goes a brief explanation. Each month you are assigned a participating food blogger to make a recipe from and in turn someone…
BLUE BORAGE HONEY ICE CREAM WITH HONEY GLAZED WALNUTS
If you have been following my blog for some time, you will know that a little over a year ago, my family and I went to New Zealand’s north island for a short holiday. During our trip, we came across a great little shop that sold all kinds of honey and honey products: Huka Honey…
MINI CHEESECAKE CUPCAKES
I love cheesecake… who doesn’t? I have made my share of no-bake cheesecakes, but to tell you the truth, I still have to make a baked cheesecake at home. Don’t ask me why, but baking a cheesecake always intimidated me. After making these little gems though, I think I am going to have to bake myself…
CHOCOLATE AND VANILLA SHARK MINI CUPCAKES
I made these mini cupcakes for Victoria’s 5th birthday party. The theme was The Little Mermaid and the sea, so I decided to make the icing blue, like the sea. I decorated them with some shark fins made out of chocolate. As I had already made many sweets for the party, I kept the flavours of…
SWEET SUSHI
I have been wanting to make sweet sushi for a while now! I always thought that it looked great. My daughter’s birthday party was the perfect occasion as it was a “sea themed” party. I have to say that this was probably the most successful dish of the buffet as it did look quite real and impressive,…
SEA MARSHMALLOW POPS
Organising a little girl’s birthday party can be lots of fun… but it also requires a bit of research. Especially when the little one has a clear idea of what she wants (and she’s only 5!). The theme HAD to be The Little Mermaid. So I started looking around the web for ideas (thank you…
THE LITTLE MERMAID FONDANT CAKE
As I am sure you have noticed, my eldest daughter loves The Little Mermaid so she requested an “Ariel cake” for her 5th birthday party. I must admit, I was a bit worried about it as making a human form out of fondant is not as easy as making an animal… in fact, it could…
VICTORIA’S 5TH BIRTHDAY
On the 16th my eldest daughter turned 5 and I have been quite busy organising her birthday parties. She celebrated in school with her friends on the 16th itself and I made her a Little Mermaid Yogurt Cake to take along and some Flounder Shortbread Cookie Pops to give as party favors. When she came…
THE LITTLE MERMAID YOGURT CAKE
Today is my eldest daughter’s 5th birthday. I cannot believe it’s already been 5 years since I first held her in my arms… she was so small! And now she’s growing to be a beautiful and sweet girl. I will be very busy in the next few days as we will be celebrating her birthday…
FRUIT SALAD EN PAPILLOTE – MACEDONIA AL CARTOCCIO
Our July 2012 Daring Cooks’ host was Sarah from All Our Fingers in the Pie! Sarah challenges us to learn a new cooking technique called “Cooking En Papillote” which is French and translates to “cooking in parchment”. As I already said in my Baked Feta post (the first of the recipes I created this month), I was really…
MANGO AND PASSION FRUIT MACARONS
And here it goes… another way to use that delicious Passion fruit Curd you have in the fridge! I have made my share of macarons in the last few months, but this was the first time I filled them with a fruit based curd. I can tell you one thing: I loved them, and I…
PASSION FRUIT CURD
I have to decided to set out on a mission: try and find out as many passion fruit based dishes as possible… and then cook them! Hehehehe After posting my Passion fruit and Coconut Crème Brûlée a little while ago, today I am going to share with you the recipe for a delicious Passion fruit…
APPLE STRUDEL – APFELSTRUDEL – STRUDEL DI MELE
Today’s Regional Italian dish comes from the northern region of Trentino – Alto Adige that borders with Austria. This region (and some areas around it) was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and it shares many culinary traditions with Austria and the surrounding areas. It seems that Strudel was born in the area now known as…
ROOIBOS TEA AND LAVENDER SORBET
And it is time again for the “Secret recipe club” reveal! I am sure you all know what the club is about, but for the few of you who still don’t know about it, here goes a brief explanation. Each month you are assigned a participating food blogger to make a recipe from and in…
